FAQ

If you are looking for individualized music instruction tailored to the needs of your child, PAS is the place for you! Our teachers make sure that technique and repertoire are age and developmentally appropriate. Students will be guided and nurtured by some of the best educators in the region. What makes PAS unique and sets it apart is its breadth of classes and performance opportunities offered. Each student performs at least twice per year, and there are programs for extended learning through classes and ensembles. Students can also participate in numerous offsite performances. Because we are a nonprofit, our goals are educational, not profit motivated; and financial aid is available to anyone who needs it. PAS is a member of the National Guild for Community Arts Education and adheres to their Code of Best Practices, assuring quality, access, and accountability.

As part of the Wharton Institute for the Performing Arts, we are linked to other unique and award-winning programs, including:

• New Jersey Youth Symphony
• Paterson Music Project
• Community Programming, and more!

Our mission is to provide the highest quality performing arts education to a wide range of students in a supportive and inclusive environment, where striving for personal excellence inspires and connects those we teach to the communities we serve. With these three groups merged together, the Institute is able to provide unmatched access, serving 1,500 youth and providing over $500,000 in scholarships in the last year alone!

PAS always needs volunteers, no matter your age or background! You can help by assisting with ticket sales, fundraisers such as our Musical Theater Arts flower sale, stuffing envelopes, and delivering brochures and flyers to the community! Contact info@whartonarts.org to join our Volunteer Corps.

Yes! Stop by our front office to receive a FREE copy of The Music Parents’ Guide by New Jersey Youth Symphony alumnus and former Wharton Board of Trustee member Anthony Mazzocchi.

Yes! We are members of ArtPride New Jersey, and you can help support the arts across the state by visiting www.artpridenj.com. ArtPride New Jersey advances, promotes, and advocates for the arts as essential to the quality of life of every citizen and to the economic vitality of our state.

As a nonprofit, our focus remains on the students and their education. It is not about making money. Any financial surplus is reinvested in the organization; it is not paid to shareholders. The government recognizes nonprofits because they serve a need in the community that government is not able to provide—in our case, music and performing arts education to all, regardless of ability to pay, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin, marital status, sexual  orientation, or military status.

Wharton Institute for the Performing Arts is the umbrella organization for the Berkeley Heights–based Performing Arts School, New Providence–based New Jersey Youth Symphony, and the Paterson Music Project. The mission of all three programs is to provide the highest quality performing arts education to a wide range of students in a supportive and inclusive environment, where striving for personal excellence inspires and connects those they teach to the communities they serve.

Yes! We are a member of the National Guild for Community Arts Education and follow their Code of Best Practices. Read more about that here. We are a founding member of the Royal Conservatory Music Development Program, and more information about the program can be found here. We are a member of the League for American Orchestras and El Sistema USA. We also serve as a fiscal agent for the newly developed El Sistema New Jersey Alliance, a group of seven NJ organizations providing El Sistema–inspired programs similar to our Paterson Music Project.

Get involved! Donate, volunteer, and help spread the word. For more information on how you can get involved with Wharton Institute for the Performing Arts, contact us at info@whartonarts.org.